Small biz programs for contractors could be consolidated in reorg

The White House proposed consolidating programs that offer credentials to small businesses aspiring to contract with the federal government as part of a proposed large-scale reorganization plan released by the Trump administration June 21.

The Small Business Administration would take over programs currently spread across multiple agencies including the Departments of Agriculture, Transportation, Treasury and Veterans Affairs.

Small business owners looking to get access to federal funding programs into SBA's Office of Capital Access would have a "one-stop shop," the plan stated.

Along with making the process of getting access to capitalization programs and contracts easier for small businesses, the White House said its plan would also allow the government to take a closer look at how it assesses eligibility criteria, application processes and reporting for the programs. It would also ensure consistency of processes across the government, as well as possibly save some money in the longer term.

However, the proposal said, if a small business program at a given agency is "highly specialized" or "industry-specific" it would stay at that agency and any overlapping SBA program would be purged.